Fema Records Show Kerr County Didn't Alert All Cell Phones As Flooding Began

FEMA records obtained by NBC 5 Investigates show that Kerr County officials did not usage FEMA’s Integrated Public Alert & Warning System to nonstop warnings pinch information instructions to each mobile phones successful nan affected area during captious hours arsenic the flooding began connected July 4.

Researchers who person studied nan compartment telephone informing strategy told NBC 5 Investigates that policies connected really and erstwhile to rumor captious alerts alteration wide from 1 region to another, perchance risking delays erstwhile seconds count.

As nan hunt for nan missing continues successful Kerr County, records reviewed by NBC 5 Investigates raise caller questions astir whether section officials could person utilized nan nation’s wireless emergency alert strategy to better pass group successful nan flood’s path.

Along pinch our partners astatine NBC News, we scoured a FEMA archive of compartment telephone alerts sent done FEMA’s integrated nationalist alert and informing system, aliases IPAWS.

IPAWS is simply a strategy that galore section counties, including Kerr County, are authorized to usage to rumor warnings to each compartment phones successful a designated area. It’s nan aforesaid strategy utilized to nonstop Amber Alerts.

The FEMA connection archive shows that arsenic nan h2o began rising successful Kerr County connected July 4, nan National Weather Service sent an IPAWS flood informing to compartment phones arsenic early arsenic 1:14 a.m.

However, upwind work forecasters cannot rumor instructions connected whether to evacuate aliases hold for rescue; those messages are up to region aliases metropolis officials.

The FEMA archive showed that Kerr County did not nonstop immoderate wireless alerts done IPAWS connected July 4, erstwhile nan flooding began.

Some families said they did person a CodeRed alert from Kerr County, which is akin to an IPAWS message. But CodeRed only reaches group who signed up for alerts.

“Most of nan group I’ve talked to didn’t moreover cognize what CodeRed was,” said Kerr County resident Louis Kocurek.

Louis and Leslie Kocurek shared a screenshot of a Kerr County dispatch CodeRed connection they received, saying awesome flooding continues. However, nan Kocureks said that nan connection didn’t scope their phones until aft 10 a.m.

By then, 1 flood gauge successful Kerr County showed nan stream had already risen astir 30 feet, and nan Kocureks had taken a photograph showing that roads successful their vicinity were already trim off.

“I’m huffy because, you know, for illustration I told different lady, really galore lives do we person to suffer successful bid for them to hole nan system? It’s broken,” said Leslie Kocurek.

Kerr County has utilized nan wider-reaching IPAWS strategy to pass of flooding successful nan past. Last year, connected July 23, nan archive showed nan region sent an IPAWS alert saying nan Guadalupe River was “expected to emergence an further 4 feet,” telling group to “avoid nan river” and “move assets to higher crushed immediately.”

So why nary region IPAWS alert earlier nan flood this time?

NBC 5 Investigates reached retired to Kerr County Judge Rob Kelly and emergency guidance coordinator William Thomas, but they did not instantly respond to questions.

At a news convention past week, Kelly was asked why children’s camps on nan stream were not evacuated.

“I can’t reply that, I don’t know,” said Kelly, adding that they ne'er expected h2o would emergence truthful fast.

“We didn’t cognize this flood was coming. Rest assured, nary 1 knew this benignant of flood was coming,” Kelly said.

Researchers who person studied nan IPAWS strategy told NBC 5 Investigates that communities crossed nan state sometimes struggle to determine erstwhile to rumor compartment telephone alerts, who should rumor those alerts, and what nan messages should say. The struggle stems, they said, successful portion from a deficiency of standardized nationwide policies.

“There is nary required training. There’s nary certification process presently wrong IPAWS,” said Jeannette Sutton, an emergency alert interrogator who explained it’s up to each section authorities to constitute its ain policies. That methodology, she said, has created differences successful really efficaciously nan strategy is utilized successful each community.

“We request a batch of training, and we request nan resources to thief group to get trained,” said Sutton.

Sutton’s squad astatine nan University astatine Albany precocious helped FEMA create a instrumentality for section emergency managers to usage to pre-plan much effective messages earlier disaster strikes.

“They are mostly facing a blank matter container that says, ‘insert connection here.’ And you tin ideate that successful a business wherever there’s a batch of accent and uncertainty, that penning a connection from scratch is very difficult,” said Sutton.

In a connection to NBC 5, FEMA said its IPAWS agency “..encourages and supports practicing and exercising..” and said nan agency makes training devices disposable “...enabling nationalist information officials to summation assurance utilizing IPAWS.”

“It is really important to get it correct erstwhile people’s lives are connected nan line,” said Sutton.

Sutton said compartment telephone alerts tin beryllium critical, particularly successful places for illustration Kerr County, which doesn’t person a siren informing system.

But she said counties should besides amplify alerts utilizing devices for illustration societal media aliases moreover knocking connected doors, arsenic compartment telephone work is sometimes spotty successful agrarian areas.

On nan greeting of nan July 4 floods, nan Kerr County Sheriff’s Department did usage its Facebook account, posting messages astir 5:30 a.m. informing of “dangerous flooding” and urging group to “move to higher ground.” Those messages could person reached societal media users who happened to beryllium awake and looking astatine Facebook, but they would not sound an alert connected a telephone for illustration an IPAWS message.

At a news convention Wednesday, nan sheriff said nan region would look into whether removal orders should person been issued.

“Sometimes, removal is not nan safest. Sometimes it’s amended to shelter successful place,” said Sheriff Larry Leitha.

The sheriff besides pledged to analyse why compartment telephone alerts did not hap sooner.

“Those are important questions. Those are, we will reply those questions,” said Leitha.

Questions pinch answers that mightiness thief different communities look nan adjacent disaster.